Mobile devices may have a limited character input capability due to their size. Such devices may be equipped with a touch screen for entering characters through a display such as a virtual keyboard. A virtual keyboard may be represented as an image displayed on the screen of a mobile device. To enter a character a user may press a pictured key with the character he wants to input. In some devices, a stylus is used for this purpose. However, in many of today's device the keyboard and, in fact, the whole device may be controlled by a finger or thumb.
In some cases, due to their size, it not practical for certain mobile devices to display a standard keyboard having keys of a usable size. With this in mind, some mobile devices may display a virtual keypad with a layout similar to that of standard phone. Specifically, the mobile device may display a keyboard having a limited number of keys and assign one key to a number different characters. To select a particular character, a user may press a key several times until the right character is displayed or in some instances the device may be programmed to predict words as the user presses keys.